The Demigod Collection
by serenathedinosaur
Summary: This is a collection of drabbles, short stories, and writing prompts featuring your favorite half-bloods. Currently accepting prompts and requests for future stories. Please review and send your story ideas! IN PROGRESS.
1. Before the Storm

Hey guys! This is going to be basically a collection of oneshots, drabbles, and short little PJO stories of various characters, couples, friendships, etc etc. Let me know if you have a request or prompt and I'll see if I can work with it. Hope you all enjoy!

This first one features our favorite couple Frank and Hazel. Takes place around Mark of Athena and House of Hades. Enjoy!

* * *

Before the Storm

"Where are we going?"

"Patience. We're almost there."

Hazel gripped Frank's warm hand as she led him throughout the _Argo II. _Frank had no idea where she was taking him and _why _she was taking him there, but he knew not to pester her with more questions. She undoubtedly had a surprise planned for him and he was especially jittery on the inside to found out what it was.

Several stairs later, Frank felt the familiar atmosphere of the top deck of the _Argo II. _He was about to take the blindfold off his eyes when Hazel slapped his hand away.

"Not yet. Hold on."

Hazel disappeared, leaving Frank all by his lonesome. He clenched and unclenched his right hand, feeling as if something was missing, and he realized it was because he was no longer holding Hazel's hand. He always secretly loved it when she randomly intertwined her fingers with his. It was like his other half was finally reuniting with him.

_Geez,_ he thought to himself. _That was sappy._

An odd sound came from the other side of the deck. It was slightly muffled, as if it were coming from a speaker, and it took Frank a few seconds to recognize it.

_Music._

Moments later, Hazel was back by his side, leading him to the center of the deck. She slowly peeled away his blindfold, and the first thing Frank saw was the darkness around them. As his eyes adjusted, he began to pick out other details: the starry night above them, the record player in the corner, and the beautiful girl standing before him.

"What is all this?" he asked.

Hazel blushed slightly. "We haven't had any alone time in a while, and we both have been working hard on this quest. I thought maybe we could use a break."

Frank broke out into a smile. "A break would be nice."

"Come on. Let's dance."

Frank's smile dropped. "Wait—dance? I—I can't dance."

"Everyone can dance. I'll show you the basics."

Frank allowed her to take the lead. As they stood in the middle of the deck hand-in-hand, Frank got a better look at Hazel. She was wearing a simple skirt and blouse, her hair pulled back neatly. To anyone, this could have been an everyday outfit; but to the daughter of Pluto constantly fighting for her life every day, this was anything but.

Hazel had told Frank to wear something nice, so he was thankfully dressed for the occasion. A button down shirt and khaki pants seemed to work perfectly. Frank wasn't used to wearing these clothes too often, but he always managed to clean up nicely.

"Ready?" Hazel asked, staring up at Frank.

The son of Mars shrugged meekly. "Yeah, sure."

Frank was never the most graceful creature on earth, and when Hazel began teaching him how to dance, that fact became quite evident. She tried to show him a "simple" move—right leg forward, left leg back; right leg back, left leg forward—but he kept getting his timing messed up and ended up moving too quickly or too slowly. Then, when he thought he could keep to the pace of the scratchy record music, he ended up tripping over his too-large of feet and stepping on Hazel's toes. He felt his face flush every time he screwed something up.

"Sorry," he mumbled as he tripped for the seventh time. "I'm so sorry."

Hazel laughed like she was having the time of her life. "Don't worry about it. Keep trying."

Frank felt his hands grow clammy. He let go of Hazel's and rubbed the back of his neck. "I told you I'm no good at dancing."

"You just haven't had much practice."

"We've been going at this for twenty minutes now."

Hazel reached over and took Frank's hand yet again. She gave it a reassuring squeeze and planted a kiss on his cheek.

"You'll get it," she said, and her eyes told Frank that she truly believed he would.

Frank nodded his head. "All right. Let's try this again."

He still was stumbling over his feet, grumbling under his breath the whole time. He was determined to get this move, he _had _too. Hazel had taken the time to set up this night just for him—he was _going _to learn this dance move.

"Stop thinking," Hazel instructed. "You're thinking way too much about this. Keep it simple."

_Keep it simple. _That was something he had told Annabeth before. Maybe he should start taking his own advice.

Frank took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and cleared his mind. He had to stop overthinking things and just _feel _it happen. He knew he could pick up on this—it truly was a simple move—and all he had to do was _feel _instead of _think._

"One more time," Frank said. He mentally waved the fog away from his head. His mind felt less cloudy now.

_Don't think._

Suddenly, like magic, Frank found himself doing what he previously thought was impossible. His feet were going where they had to go, his timing was nearly perfect, and it was all in sync with Hazel and the music. Frank, to his utter disbelief, was _dancing._

Hazel laughed. "I told you!"

Frank was smiling like an idiot. Things became a lot easier after that. He let the music flow throughout his body as he effortlessly mastered the simple dance move, thanks to Hazel. Their arms swung back and forth as they got more and more into the music. Frank was actually _enjoying _himself—something he never thought he could do while _dancing._ He even threw in a more complicated, improvised move in there just for the heck of it—it was a twirl that led Hazel right into his arms.

They stood there for a while, Frank's arms wrapped around Hazel, his chin resting on her head, all while staring at the night sky out in the distance. They swayed slowly to the music, though it didn't quite match the beat, but neither of them cared much. As long as they were together, they were happy.

"Where did you even get a record player?" Frank asked suddenly.

"Leo had one, though don't ask me why. This is some of the stuff I used to listen to back in New Orleans."

"I like it," Frank said. "It's comforting."

Frank wasn't sure if the comfort came from the music itself or the association of the music with Hazel, but he knew one thing for sure—he was going to start listening to it more often.

That night, despite being the calm before the storm, was perfect.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed. Send me prompts/requests in the reviews or PM or whatever. I'm open to a lot of things and always looking for new ideas.

~Serena


	2. Nico's Birthday Bash

This one's longer than the first. It features Nico di Angelo, and I wrote it several months ago for a friend's birthday. A bit random, not really any couple stuff, mostly friendship and whatnot. Enjoy!

* * *

Nico's Birthday Bash

Nico was never a fan of birthdays. He didn't desire the attention, he didn't like parties, and he especially didn't like the socializing part.

But it was untrue to say that he disliked getting older. If anything, he enjoyed that. Aging was a form of power, a way to gain more recognition and respect. The downside of aging, though, was that he had to grow up without Bianca. The older he became, the farther away he got from his sister. It saddened him to know there was now another year separating him from her memory.

So Nico didn't mind getting older. Numbers were just a factor. But the thing that stopped him from enjoying his birthday was growing up without his sister.

Today was Nico's special day, but he felt far from special. He was afraid of what was to come. He couldn't think what would be worse: everyone forgetting his birthday or everyone remembering.

That morning, after reluctantly crawling out of bed and getting dressed, Nico walked out of the Hades cabin and was met with the bright sun. It was a warm day within camp's limits and Nico found himself stretching his arms, absorbing the fresh air and the warm sun rays. He looked around at the quiet camp before him. Demigods were here and there, but most of them were eating breakfast. Nico shut the cabin door behind him and started for the dining pavilion.

So far everything was quiet. A few campers said their hellos and good mornings, but they weren't his close friends. They didn't know about his birthday. Nico didn't know if this was a good thing or a bad thing.

He was enjoying the quiet walk to the dining pavilion when he heard a loud voice behind him.

"Nico!"

The son of Hades whirled around in time to see Jason Grace sprinting to him. He had a wide grin on his face and his arms were outstretched. He enveloped Nico in a tight hug, almost lifting him off the ground. Nico made a face.

"Happy birthday, dude!"

Jason let go and Nico was finally able to breathe again. He gave Jason a grimace.

"Thanks."

Several demigods around them heard the commotion and wished Nico a happy birthday as well. Nico muttered his thanks and walked with Jason to the dining pavilion.

"So, what are you planning on doing today?"

Nico shrugged. "Probably train. I need to work on some blocking techniques."

Jason yawned. "That would be fun on any other day, but not today."

"Just because it's my—_you know_—doesn't mean I can't train."

Jason put his arm around Nico in a friendly way. "Come on, Nico. You can't just train on your birthday! You should chill today, maybe go sailing on the lake or hit the basketball courts. I could teach you some pointers, you know."

Nico snorted. "Me? Play basketball? Not a good idea."

"Why's that?"

"I don't do sports." Nico shrugged out of Jason's friendly gesture as they walked into the pavilion.

The area was loud with chatter and laughter. Nico scanned the room and quickly spotted his friends: Leo, Piper, and Annabeth sat with their respective siblings while Percy sat alone. Jason and Nico joined Percy, turning the Poseidon table into the Big Three table.

Percy perked up at the sight of Jason and Nico.

"Morning, guys," he said. "And happy birthday, Nico."

"Thanks."

Percy glanced at Jason. The two seemed to have a silent conversation, one Nico didn't understand, before turning back to the son of Hades.

"So," Percy said nonchalantly. "Do you plan on doing anything fun today?"

"I was going to—"

"Don't say train," Percy interrupted. "You can't train on your birthday."

Nico fell silent.

"I was trying to tell him that," Jason said. "But he seems pretty keen on making today normal."

Percy laughed. "Today can't be normal. It's your birthday, dude."

Nico shrugged. "It's someone's birthday here at camp every other day. Mine's not that special."

Jason narrowed his eyes. "You don't really think that, do you?"

Nico didn't say anything. Percy and Jason exchanged a look of worry.

That was when more company joined them. Piper, Annabeth, and Leo came over and sat at the Poseidon table, bidding their good mornings. They ignored the curious stares and murmurs from the rest of the camp. It was against the rules to sit anywhere other than their cabin's table, after all. Nico and Jason were an exception to that rule. Having no siblings attending camp, they always joined Percy.

"What are you guys doing here?" Nico hissed. "You'll get in trouble." He glanced at the head table, where Chiron was purposefully ignoring the rule-breaking group.

Leo waved his hand dismissively. "We saved the world dude. I don't think anyone's gonna tell us what to do."

"Besides," Piper said. "We heard it was someone's birthday."

All eyes turned to Nico, who reddened under the attention.

"Uh…"

Jason put his arm around Nico again. "We kind of made it a point to hang out with you all day. So, tell us again: what are you planning on doing today?"

"And don't say train," Percy said again.

Nico bit his lip anxiously. "I don't know."

Leo smiled. "Good! Then we can go ahead with our plan. Annabeth, where's the list?"

Annabeth pulled out a small notebook and flipped through it. "I have everything you said written out. I think it'll all work." She handed the notebook to Leo, who read through it excitedly.

"So first we'll finish up breakfast," Leo said. "Then we'll go down to the volleyball courts and have a game—girls versus boys. Sorry girls, but we're going to kick your butts. After that, around twelve, we'll come back for a quick lunch, and then we'll get ready to go down to the beach. I figured we could swim in the lake on the hottest part of the day. Then—"

"Wait."

All eyes went back on Nico, who was clearly confused. The son of Hades took a deep breath.

"Did you guys plan out this whole day for me?"

Nico's friends looked around at each other, shrugging as if it were obvious.

"Yeah," Annabeth said, taking the notebook back from Leo. "We've got every minute planned out, starting with breakfast right now all the way until the campfire tonight."

"The _whole day,_" Nico repeated. "But…why?"

"Come on dude," Leo said. "We're your friends. You're not going to be spending your birthday training in some arena. You deserve a break."

Nico looked down sheepishly. "I'm not really one for parties."

"It's not going to be a big party," Jason promised. "It's going to be us, Frank, and Hazel. They're on their way from California right now."

"I got an Iris message from Frank," Piper remembered. "They should be here in about an hour."

Percy was clearly stoked. "Great! They'll be here in time for the volleyball game."

"Which we're going to win," Annabeth said, Piper nodding alongside her.

Leo snorted. "You girls don't stand a chance."

Piper glared at Leo. "Oh, really, Valdez? What makes you think—?"

"Guys," Jason said, calling order back to the table like a true Roman. "Let's save the competition for the game." He turned back to Nico, who looked overwhelmed with the talk of volleyball games and all the other activities they were going to do that day.

"All we want to do is give you a great birthday," Jason said. "But we understand if you don't want to do any of these things. You can choose what we do, if you want, or you can spend the day alone. It's up to you. We only want you to be happy."

The others nodded. Nico studied each of their expressions and found them to be honest and sincere.

_They really do care about me._

Nico gestured to the notebook in Annabeth's hands. "So, what's on that list?"

Annabeth handed it to Leo again, who smiled mischievously at Nico.

"Just you wait and see."

* * *

Today was certainly planned out to the very last second. Once Hazel and Frank arrived, the eight demigods got set to having a great day.

The volleyball game was a huge competition. Frank decided to be the referee in order to even out the teams more, but the girls were still lacking a player. They played anyway, and their uneven teams didn't hinder the girls at all, for they won against the boys after an intense hour.

Nico surprisingly liked volleyball. He was too short to spike the ball over the net but he was pretty good otherwise.

After the game the demigods coaxed Nico into shooting a few hoops at the basketball court. Nico wished he could say he was good at that sport, but he couldn't. He and Leo both could barely shoot the ball anywhere near the basket. They blamed their perpetual shortness.

It was just after twelve when the demigods returned to the Poseidon table for a quick lunch. Again, no one made Piper, Leo, and Annabeth go back to their siblings. Of course people stared and made a big deal out of it, but those three were part of the Seven of the Great Prophecy. No half-blood felt brave enough to enforce the rules. And Chiron turned a blind eye, knowing that those eight particular demigods deserved to be happy together.

The lake was next on their list. It took up a big portion of their day. They swam, danced, laughed, and smiled the whole time. They had a sandcastle building competition (which Nico and Leo won with their depiction of Hades' palace) and a swimming race (which was a tie between Percy and Frank). The girls lay on the beach and talked while the boys threw footballs around and tackled each other senselessly.

The sun was beginning to go down as Nico lay on the beach. It was relaxing to see the day come to an end, especially after such a day like this. He wished the sun would hold out just a little bit longer so he could spend a few more hours with his friends. He dug his toes into the sand and listened to the crashing of the waves on the beach and the laughter of the demigods. Jason and Percy were trying to pull both Piper and Annabeth into the water. Frank and Hazel were building another sandcastle equipped with a moat and a seashell battalion. Nico smiled at the scene.

Leo saw Nico in the sand and joined him.

"How are you?" Leo asked as he sat down next to his friend.

"I'm good," Nico said. "Great, actually. I can't believe you guys wanted to spend a whole day with me."

"We would do that regardless of your birthday," Leo insisted. "Don't sell yourself short. You're our best friend. You're my best friend."

Nico smiled a genuine, happy smile. He and Leo gazed at the sun slowly disappearing behind the horizon.

* * *

After the lake, they had dinner back at the pavilion, where the whole camp sang to Nico, to his utter horror. Leo and Jason both nudged Nico and gave him warm smiles as if to say, _Cheer up! Everyone is wishing you a happy birthday! _

Nico's friends then dragged him to the Big House, where they played several rounds of Mythomagic. Nico was surprised when they mentioned it, and at first they looked at him uneasily. They didn't know if he was going to have resurfaced old memories and flat out say no to them. But to their surprise, Nico went along with it.

He and Frank dominated the game, both having played religiously when they were younger. Everyone laughed when Frank and Nico got into arguments over the best attack moves.

Hazel rolled her eyes at her boyfriend and brother. "You guys are so—what's the word?"

"Nerdy," Piper supplied.

"That's it."

Frank grunted. "No offence, Hazel, but your brother here doesn't understand that Zeus' attack is one of the best." He turned to Nico. "He has 600 damage points with his lightning, man. Way better than Apollo."

"Apollo has plus 30 in health and 2,000 in defense," Nico retorted. "He may not be the strongest in offence but his defense his fantastic. He can take Zeus' lightning bolts any day."

The boys went back to arguing over the best strategies for the game. Nico was for defensive strategies while Frank was all for the offensive.

The others exchanged looks and rolled their eyes.

After breaking up the nerd argument between Frank and Nico, Hazel made the suggestion of dessert—cake, to be specific.

"Cake?" Nico suddenly said, forgetting all about Frank and the Mythomagic game.

"Hazel and I baked a blue cake," Percy said. "It's like the one we had for my fifteenth birthday."

There was a hint of a smile on Nico's face. "I liked that cake."

Piper went to the back room and returned minutes later with the dessert. She set it on the table inside the Big House. Leo swiped his hand over the top of the cake, lighting all the candles.

"Make a wish," Jason said, shoving Nico toward the table.

Nico momentarily looked around at all his friends, suddenly grateful that they were there. This morning he had been prepared to turn each and every one of them down to live through a normal day of training at the arena. Now he was glad they talked him into their plan. Today had been one of the best days ever.

He leaned over the cake and blew out the candles, thinking of one particular thing in his mind.

_I wish this will never end._

Nico himself wasn't too sure what _this _was. Was _this _the friendship he had with these demigods? Was _this _the fun day they had? Was _this _the happiness he was feeling? Was _this _the lack of sadness toward missing Bianca? Was _this _his freedom in moving on from his sister's death, from the war and the gods, and toward tranquility and a nice life?

Whatever _this _was, he sure hoped his wish would come true.

Suddenly, Frank retrieved a box from the back room. He set it on the chair next to Nico.

"What's this?" Nico asked, looking at the perfectly wrapped gift.

"It's a present from all of us," Jason said. "We each pitched in money to have it made. Open it up."

Nico gingerly tore at the wrapping. When he opened the box and saw what was underneath the white tissue paper, his eyes widened.

He pulled out a brand new brown aviator jacket. It was similar to his old one except it was bigger and better made. He could tell it was a lot more expensive than the one he had before.

"We noticed you are growing out of your current one," Piper said. "It's also pretty torn up from all the fighting you've done in it. Basically, it's a mess."

"This one is specially made," Annabeth continued. "It has tough material that is basically monster-proof."

Nico didn't know what to say. He shrugged on the jacket wordlessly. It was a perfect fit and extremely comfortable. It was probably one of the best gifts he had ever gotten.

"This is…" Nico was at lost for words. "Awesome. Incredible." He looked bashfully at his friends. "I can't thank you all enough."

"Group hug!" Leo shouted. He jumped at Nico and wrapped him in a tight hug. Everyone followed suit and in a second Nico was sandwiched between his friends.

Nico smiled to himself. He was truly happy.

* * *

After cake and the nightly campfire, Nico returned to the Hades cabin. He took off his new aviator jacket and hung it up on the hook behind the door. He kicked off his shoes and jumped into bed, exhausted from a day of laughter.

_What was I going to do today? _Nico thought. _Oh, that's right. Train._ As memories of the day flooded back to him, he laughed aloud.

As of now, Nico was always a fan of birthdays.

* * *

Hope you liked this. Send me requests/prompts. Review!

~Serena


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